APPENDIX ‘L’
DRAFT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMING CONCEPT
A National Development Plan may be as simple or as sophisticated as conditions and the need dictate. It must however be realistic as to resources of the country, objectives being pursued and the time frames for delivery of expectations. It must be based on defensible information which can be monitored, and thereby permit the Plan to be reviewed and revised, if necessary. It must have the widest possible community support. It should not be a political program but must present a national agenda.
Assuming that an acceptable political and community consensus can be developed on where Dominica should be headed, there exists a complementary need for a Schedule of Development Objectives, which will support and give credibility to the approved planning agenda. For example, these might include objectives with a social focus such as reduction and eradication of poverty; promotion of communal economic projects; economic empowerment of women; greater spread effects of investment to rural communities;
improved housing; greater accessibility to health care and education. Some objectives might target environmental concerns such as: protection of water resources; erosion and
sediment control; solid and liquid waste management; better foreshore, beach and offshore management; conservation of rare and endangered wildlife. These and comparable objectives for the many policy areas covered by the plan will be implemented by appropriate programs and projects, with necessary funding support.
Lastly, all programming and project development intentions should be indexed to operational phasing which recognises and embraces a network of forward and backward linkages for both public and private sectors. The entire plan of objectives, policies, programs and projects is made credible by a monitoring regime (review, regulation and adjustment), which allows the decision-makers to react to the progress of all proposals, and allows the public to see and understand how well (or badly) the established goals are being achieved.
Some potential criteria in the selection of projects and the priorities, which might be accorded to them, are proposed hereunder:
1. Essential infra-structural improvements.
2. Projects which are catalytic in nature (give rise to other projects).
3. Projects having strong income/employment multiplier effects.
4. Projects utilizing available appropriate (but competitive) technology.
5. Projects resulting in local/regional imports displacement.
6. Credible foreign exchange earners
7. Low import material (volume/value) component.
8. Low environmental impact.
9. Skills available.
10. Joint Venture or Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) candidates.
11. Scale flexible.
12. Rural conformable.
The preceding listing is not meant to be definitive but is indicative of the type of criteria, which might arise out of a public consultation process and the relative importance which might be assigned to each. Once again, a knowledgeable reader and an investor is able to assess by reference to the list and weighting, the likely degree of acceptance that a proposal is likely to receive in Dominica. Fly-by-night or pipe-dream proposals can be summarily dismissed if they are “off the chart”. Proposals, which fit, even though they propose new and innovative approaches would obviously be well-received.
SAMPLE PROJECTS -- ACCEPTABILITY RATING
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PROJECTS |
RATING |
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|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
|
|
Airport Capacity |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
|
X |
X |
X |
|
Power generation |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
|
X |
X |
X |
|
Flagship Resort |
|
X |
X |
X |
|
X |
|
|
|
X |
X |
X |
|
Spa Tourist Center |
|
X |
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
Pharmaceutical/Cosmetics Products |
|
X |
X |
|
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
X |
X |
|
Plastic Containers And Products |
|
X |
X |
|
X |
X |
|
|
|
X |
X |
|
|
Waste Management Units |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
|
|
|
X |
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